Numerical simulation of waves generated by landslides using a multiple-fluid Navier–Stokes model

This work reports on the application and experimental validation, for idealized geometries, of a multiple-fluid Navier–Stokes model of waves generated by rigid and deforming slides, with the purpose of improving predictive simulations of landslide tsunamis. In such simulations, the computational domain is divided into water, air, and slide regions, all treated as Newtonian fluids. For rigid slides, a penalty method allows for parts of the fluid domain to behave as a solid. With the latter method, the coupling between a rigid slide and water is implicitly computed (rather than specifying a known slide kinematics). Two different Volume of Fluid algorithms are tested for tracking interfaces between actual fluid regions. The simulated kinematics of a semi-elliptical block, moving down a water covered plane slope, is first compared to an earlier analytical solution. Results for the vertical fall of a rectangular block in water are then compared to earlier experimental results. Finally, more realistic simulations of two- and three-dimensional wedges sliding down an incline are compared to earlier experiments. Overall, in all cases, solid block velocities and free surface deformations are accurately reproduced in the model, provided that a sufficiently resolved discretization is used. The potential of the model is then illustrated on more complex scenarios involving waves caused by multi-block or deformable slides.     

Boron cosmochemistry. Part I: Boron in meteorites

Abstract Thirty-six fragments of meteorite falls, never touched by water or other possible sources of B contamination, were analyzed for B by prompt gamma-ray neutron activation analysis at McMaster University and at the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology. Boron concentrations are close to the sensitivity limit in both laboratories. Results between the two laboratories agree well but with slight systematic differences attributable to blank and background correction factors. The mean B concentrations in different meteorites are similar, from 0.5 to 1.1 ppm. The ranges in different CC, OC and ACH classes overlap, mostly from 0.4 to 1.4 ppm, which is similar to previous measurements on falls. The H, L and LL meteorites overlap in B content with Antarctic chondrites. The solar system abundance, taken as the mean B content of the matrix in all CC, was calculated from seven samples and is 0.69 ± 0.09 ppm. When normalized, this abundance is 16.9 ± 2.2 (atoms/10⁶Si). Normalized B and S concentrations show a linear relationship in the CC; the average OC lies on the same line, but individual OCs are dispersed.     

Resorption process in Astypalaea Linea extensive region (Europa)

Whereas numerous extensive features, where new crust is created, are now well recognized on Europa's surface, those relevant to crust disappearance remain difficult to find. This work presents a reconstruction of the surface prior to Astypalaea Linea's emplacement (one of the features where new crustal material appears). We demonstrate that a scattered disappearance of crust takes place in an extensive region close to Astypalaea Linea. Physical processes invoked for disappearance are discussed: pressure melting may be responsible for the mobilization of surface material and its collapse down through the icy crust.     

The Pleistocene hominid site of Ternifine, Algeria: New results on the environment, age, and human industries

A new multidisciplinary research program, started in 1981, provided new data on the stratigraphy, fauna, and human industries, as well as the first results on paleomagnetism and sedimentology, for the Ternifine site in Algeria, which yielded the earliest hominid remains known in North Africa. The fossils were deposited in a swamp or lake surrounded by a very open, dry environment. The lake was fed by artesian springs that raised the underlying Miocene sands. Although nothing suggests a camp or butchery site, we discovered the first undisputable bone artifact in this site, the earliest known in this part of Africa. According to paleontological data, 700,000 yr B.P. is a likely age for the Ternifine deposits, which is consistent with the paleomagnetic results.